ARCHITECTURAL PROGRAMING

Webster definition; “a plan or procedure

•Duerk’s definition

• architectural programming is process of managing

information so that the right kind of information is available
at right stage of the design process and the best possible
decisions can be made in shaping the outcome of the
building design.

•It also creates the structure for fulfilling the hopes, wishes,
and desires of the building’s future inhabitants.
•Architectural programming is the problem-
seeking phase
•Design-problem solving phase

Programming is the first step of the design

process
Information provided by the client/user
Design team or
Program consultant
Programming is the first step of the design process
•Information provided by the client/user
•Design team or
•Program consultant
Two main concerns of programming
1. Analysis of the existing state
•Site analysis
•User profiles
•Codes
•Constraints such as climate
2. projection of the future state
•Set of criteria that the design must meet in order to be
successful and includes
•the mission,
•goal,
•concepts and
•performance requirements
Design Issues
• is defined as an area of concern that demands
a design response
•Are categories for searching for information or
data about the existing state as topics for goals,
performance requirements, concepts that are
develop to describe the future state.

.
 PRE-DESIGN
SERVICE
Programming
Feasibility
Master plans
prototypes

SCHEMATIC
DESIGN

DESIGN
DEVELOPMENT

POST DESIGN
Post occupancy evaluation
User’s manual
Evaluation research

AIA DESIGN
PROCESS
LE

DESIGN PROCESS AS CYCLIC

PROCESS

Program document-
•states the mission (purpose) of the
project and serves as a repository of all
relevant factual material pertaining to
the project
•documents all relevant factual materials
and decisions about the scope and
direction of the project
Analysis- is the breaking up of any whole into
parts so as to find out their nature, function,

Synthesis –putting together of parts or

elements to form a whole.
Facts-site, user, culture economics must be
uncovered
Data about site
•Cultural
•Natural
•Aesthetics
Organizing framework
Pena (1987) design issues
•Form
•Function
•Economy
•Time
Palmer (1981)design issues
•Human factors
•Physical factors
•External factors
 Duerk

ISSUES PRIVACY SECURITY TERRITORIALI IMAGE MAINTENANC PHYSICAL AUDIBILIT ETC

TY E COMFORT
Y

FACTS

VALUES

GOALS

PERFORMA
NCE
REQUIREM
ENT

CONCEPTS
HIERARCHY OF DECISIONS
MISSION- should answer the questions

•Why are we doing this project?

•What is the contribution that this project will make
to the world?

All goals requirements concepts performance

requirements must be parallel to the mission
.
Professional issues and concerns
Limits creativity
Too complicated
Increase cost, waste, energy

Importance
Give architects info for projects big or small
Stage for gathering info and decisions

Preparation

Program form
Content
Prliminaries
Executive summary
Values and goals
Design considerations
Project requirements
Space identification
And allocation
.
Mission- defines special purpose that the building
project must fulfil to succeed. Contains set of
values that were part of the impetus that
generated the project.
“Why do we need to do this project?”.
Mission and issues should be stated so that goals
can be formulated.
EXAMPLE :
Mission statement: to create an educational
facility that supports 7,8, and 9 graders in making
an easy transition from childhood to adulthood.
Goal-
•must be developed
•Clearly expresses the level of quality to be reached
by the final design regarding all design issues have
been uncovered in the analysis phase.

•It is a statement of an ideal quality level in which

the design should have to be 100% successful.
Types of goals
Process/resource goals
•Time
•Financial
•Talent
•Skill
•Critic
•Evaluators
Types of goals
Educational goals-opportunity of the design
team to learn something
Personal goal-what the design team wants
to get from the project
Project goals-relate only to the outcome
desired from the project
Techniques in developing goals
•Interview
•Observation
•Scenarios
•Existing documents
Good goal statement
• level of quality or degree of excellence that the ideal
solution or final product will achieve.

•resolve the question raised about the role of a

particular issue in the design project.

•embodies the aspirations of the client and the users

so that the designer is inspired to fulfil those dreams.

•focuses on the quality of environment to be achieved

for the issue that the goal is delineating.
Method of formulating goal
•focus on the designer’s search for a solution to
problem without limiting the potential for
multiple, alternative design concepts that would
fulfil the goal’s intention

•Heuristic method

•Goal should be general

•It should avoid words that are open to wide range

of interpretation
Writing goal statement
1. answers the question “how is the mission for this
project to be accomplished?
2. is a statement of quality of the ideal solution
therefore: there should have some adjectives/adverbs
3. words with should be
4. simply stated as possible and should allow all
relevant performance requirements to be covered in its
scope.
5. cover a priority issue and be same scope and
importance as the rest of the other goals of the
projects
6. positive and proactive
Example: the facility should provide and extremely clear, simple,
and exciting circulation system for members of the college of
architecture and environmental design as well as for the visitors.
Mission statement:
To create a residential environment that blends easily into a
variety of anew England settings, yet, at the same time, provides
space and support features necessary to habitation of severely
retarded/disabled adults
Goal: the meal preparation/dining areas should promote active
participation by the residents and facilitate the learning of daily
living skills.
(issue: social interaction/learning)
Goal:
Parking should be within a few minute walk from the downtown
core(issue: circulation)
Performance requirements-

•Way of achieving goal

•Level of excellence to be attained

•Synonymous to “design criteria” of

Pena
How to write PR

1. should answer HOW IS TH FUNCTION OF THIS

GOAL TO BE IMPLEMENTED?
2. SUB-ISSUE: develop a specific, measurable,
and operational. Use adjectives and adverbs that
will clearly describe the level of function.
Dominant verb should be used
3. use of word should
4. Simply stated yet allow for all relevant
concepts to be included
5. Should cover a sub-issue.
6. should be proactive and positive
PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENT
Statement about measurable level of function that the
designed object, building, or place must provide for a
goal to be met. It is also called performance
specification standard or a criterion and is often labelled
as an objective.
Example:
Goal-the house should maintain a moderate level of
physical comfort.
Moderate quality
physical comfort. Issues
a PR is more specific than goal since it relate to function
(a doing) instead of quality ( a being).
Three performance requirements per goal is a good
average for schematic design
What makes a good performance requirements
•Specific
•Measurable
•Operational
Measures:
•Binary measures either yes or no. Whether or not something
works or whether or not it meets the required level of
performance.
•Scalar- measures within acceptable range of values using
physical measurements
•Judgment- evaluation based on values, verification, ranking,
estimation, approximation, guess, anticipation.
Example:
Goal: the major portion of the parking should be short,
pleasant walk from the shopping destinations
PR: shoppers coming to downtown should have to walk
less than five minutes to get from their car to 90%
destination.
Goal: building should encourage efficient and
responsible use of energy
PR: the building should use passive solar technology to
maximum extent possible for space heating.
Heat loss be kept at an absolute minimum.
75% heating should be coming from the sun
Building should take advantage of day lighting.
 concep
P t
R concep
t
concept

mission
goa
concep
l
PR t
concep
t
concept

PR concept

concep
t
concept
 VALUEs -different building types require different
responses to the same issues based upon the values
of different users.

CONCEPT
fact PERFOR
MANCE
VALUE REQUIRE
ISSUE GOAL
fact MENT
CONCEPT
fact

CONCEPT

VALUES INFLUENCE ISSUES TO FORM GOALS

Concepts-
.
FITTING PROGRAMMING
TO THE DESIGN PROCESS

When doing both programming and

design, it is difficult to keep from
jumping to solutions and using the
program to justify the design.
DEFINING ISSUES

Sort out all architectural concerns into issue –

based categories:
Issues are means to any matter that
demands a design response in order for
building project to be successful for its clients
and users
ISSUE CHECKLIST
AUDIBILITY
•Behaviour setting
CIRCULATION
•Information
•Material
•Parking
Elegant means
Phasing
Quality
Energy efficiency
Environmental impact
Flexibility
•Adaptability
•Choice/variety
•Expansion/contraction
•Multi-use
Image
•Identity
•Message
•Ordering/proportion
•Status/hierarchy
•symbolism
Interaction
•Group participation
•Social
Legibility
•Layering
•Orientation
•Plan recognition
•Sequence

COMFORT
•Physical
•Psychological
Convenience
•Durability
•Economy
Mood/ambience
•Attitude
•Emotional response
•Spirit of place
Olfactory
Personalization
•Group
•Individual
Resource management
Safety
•Accident
•Hazard
Security
•Assault
•Robbery
•Unauthorized access/.entry
•Vandalism
Territory
•Group
•Individual
Visibility
Facts
•Are objectives
• specific,
• verifiable by some measurements or observation

Site
•Climate
•Wind
•Sun
•Temperature
•Humidity
•Wind speed and direction
Codes
Site conditions
Building codes
Subdivision regulations
Fire code
Water code
Others

Traffic
Bicycles
Pedestrians
Vehicles
Person/user
•Activity analysis
•Age group
•Anthropometric
•Disability
•Environmental history
•Density
•Organizational structure
•Others
Perceptual abilities
•Personality
•Roles
•Rules
•Values

Context
•Cultural
•Demographic
•Economic
•Ethnical
•Historical
•Political
•Social
•Others
FACTS ISSUE SOLUTION
TRAFFIC LEVELS Circulation Location of entries to site
Location of existing transit Sub-issues
stops
Location of new transit stop
Number of pedestrian s
Vehicles Location of building on site
Number of mobility
Pedestrians Circulation patterns
impaired users
Mobility impaired (site and building)
Existing communication
channels Information movement Location and amount of parking for
mobility impaired
Amount ot material moved Services
per unit of vehicle Installation of new communication tech.
Bikes/motorcycle
Number of bicycle Location of ramps
Related issues: security,
Frequency of people legibility, convenience Location of size of recycling storage
moving between
,safety Location of parking for bikes and
departments
motorcycle
Size of circulation
Preparation
Program content
Preliminaries
Executive summary
Values and goals
Design considerations
Project requirements
Space identification and allocation
Relationship matrices and diagrams
Space program sheet
Budget and cost
Design analysis

Appendix
Dr. Yasser mahgoub
www.slideshare.net/ymahgoub/architectual-professional-practice-programming
www.neoconeast.com/tasks/site/NeoconEast/assets/File/T28.pdf